Yeah, ask Nellie how many titles he won with Run-TMC, the Nash-Finley-Dirk trio, or in his 2nd stint with Golden State. Hell, did he even watch the Rockets' first title run, especially the Finals against the Knicks? I get that the NBA has changed, but you don't win by playing fast. Nearly every champion in recent memory has been an above average or great defensive team.
This is a strange thing to say. There are no bad offensive teams that win the title. Teams with a low pace are not even getting far in the standings, never mind the chase for a championship. The current champions are known for their offense more than their defense. They are great at both, but they're without question more dominant offensively. Defense doesn't win championships anymore than offense does. There are the rare occasions that extreme defense compensate for average offense or vice versa, but on the whole you have to at least be a top 10 offensive and top 10 defensive team. Defense wins championships >> total myth, and the coaches who propagated the myth are quickly disappearing from the league. We are as likely to win with a purely offensive guy like D'Antoni as we would have been with JVG. They both suck on one end of the floor, and are geniuses on the other end. If we figure out the defense, and it looks like they flagged it VERY early on, we will do really really well.
You posted the pic of the guy that got to Phoenix and CHANGED D'Antoni's offense? Brought in Shaq. Lulz?
Actually, I have been thinking that in a yes, seriously way. This past year was shirley no fun at all.
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This statement confuses pace with offensive efficiency. You need great offensive efficiency to win. You don't need great pace to have great offensive efficiency. Sometimes it helps. Sometimes it doesn't.
It's not a strange thing to say. Teams that win titles have to be able to play defense. Why does anyone believe for a second that having an owner obsessed with running and scoring lots of points, a coach whose specialty is doing just that, and a franchise player who only cares about offense will lead to the Rockets being in any way respectable at the defensive end of the court this season(or beyond)?
Nah, I posted a picture of the guy who didn't win by playing fast- other than playing faster than any team in the NBA and winning more games than anybody ever.
He also has two of the best shooters of all-time and a really good defensive team with the likes of Green, Bogut, and Iggy. I have no problem with Les wanting to play at a fast pace, but the biggest issue the Rockets had last season was defense. How does hiring Mike D'Antoni address that deficiency?
